


Our Love Was Made For Movie Screens

by audioanon



Category: Kill la Kill
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-06-18
Updated: 2014-06-26
Packaged: 2018-02-03 21:03:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,185
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1756971
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/audioanon/pseuds/audioanon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Because I am a self-serving sack of shit, have some Ryuko la Satsuki, I apologize in advance.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Laying in bed, Satsuki could feel the coolness of the fan hitting her exposed calves. She could feel goosebumps rising on her arms, and a shiver ran through her body. Even though she was cold, she didn't get up to turn off the fan, rather, she was just waiting for her to show up. If Satsuki was about to have someone over, she'd need the fan on so she wouldn't overheat. And Ryuko was going to be here any second.

In the dim light, the bright message screen of the phone startles her; it was right next to her face, and the buzzing that indicated a text rattles her skull, despite the softness of the mattress. Satsuki glances over, seeing it was from Ryuko, and jumps up, suddenly alert, despite her previous exhaustion. As quietly as she could, she leaves her bedroom and maneuvers though her house to the front room. Gently, she unlocks the latch and pulls open the heavy door. Ryuko is standing there sheepishly, hands in her front jacket pockets, sending Satsuki a wide grin that crinkles the corners of her eyes.

"Hey Satsuki—" Ryuko starts, but Satsuki quickly shushes her, grabbing her hand and pulling her along back to her bedroom, even though she is aware that Ryuko knows the way herself. Satsuki pushes her inside, and then closes the door softly behind her. 

"Tense?" Ryuko asks, chuckling while taking off her jacket. 

"Yes," Satsuki snaps back, "if my mom finds out you're here—"

"Seriously? Come on, live a little!" Ryuko says back, laughing. She walks over to where Satsuki is standing, anxiously picking her cuticles. Ryuko wraps her arms around Satsuki's waist, still grinning as she holds her close. "Still, I'm just impressed you loosened up enough to sneak me in after your curfew." 

"I'm still adjusting to the idea myself, honestly," Satsuki replies bashfully, returning Ryuko's embrace.

"I'm glad I get to be the girl corrupting Satsuki Kiryuin," Ryuko whispers in a low, guttural tone.

"What kind of voice is that?" Satsuki asks, wrinkling her nose.

"Dude, seriously? That was my sexy voice!" Ryuko whines, throwing her head back in exasperation.  "Come on, it was totally sexy."

"Not particularly," Satsuki remarks in a level tone.

"It was at the very least a little sexy," Ryuko pouts. 

"Okay, maybe a little," Satsuki admits, turning the slightest shade of pink. Ryuko's wide grin returns, flashing her teeth, and she pulls Satsuki into a kiss, demanding. Satsuki reciprocates, but pulls away too quickly for Ryuko's taste.

"I wanted to watch a movie," Satsuki says lamely, and Ryuko rolls her eyes but pulls away anyway.

"Alright, alright, fine. What are we watching?"

"The one I told you about the other day, remember?" Satsuki says while rifling through her bag and pulling out a laptop. 

"Uh, maybe. I recall something about fruit." 

" _A Clockwork Orange_ ," Satsuki sighs, pulling up an errant chair and setting the computer atop it at the foot of her bed. While she is taking out the speakers, Ryuko throws herself onto the large, unkept bed, pulling off her socks and pants, revealing a pair of compression shorts.

"Do you always wear those or did you anticipate you'd be taking off your pants tonight?" Satsuki asked dryly, glancing at Ryuko's exposed legs.

"Babe, I definitely wore these for you," she replies, grinning wide. Satsuki just rolls her eyes in response.

"Don't call me babe," Satsuki says in an irrated tone.

"Sure thing, babe," she taunts back, and Sastuki sends her a pointed look. Ryuko just chuckles, and pats the adjacent space on the bed, inviting Satsuki to join her. She scoffs in response, but joins her anyway. Ryuko immediately latches onto the other woman, and starts kissing Satsuki's neck.

"Ryuko," she sighs, and pushes her away gently. Pouting, Ryuko face plants the mattress, but Satsuki could still see one of Ryuko's eyes, staring back up at her, disgruntled. Satsuki pays no mind to the childish behavior, reaching over to start the movie.

"You know, you could at least act like you're about to turn eighteen," Satsuki finally says when Ryuko is still moping.

"Just cause you're a legal adult and I'm not doesn't mean you can look down on me," Ryuko mumbles, not having moved from her previous position, face planting the sheets. Suddenly, Ryuko sits up, eyes light.

"Wait, does that make you a statutory rapist since we have all that hot lesbian sex?" Ryuko asks sarcastically through a shit-eating grin, wagging her eyebrows.

"No, Ryuko, there is an age thing—"

"Shit, Satsuki, I wasn't asking seriously!" Ryuko grumbles, and despite herself, Satsuki smiles. 

"Come on, you're supposed to be watching this," Satsuki says softly, rewinding the movie so Ryuko could actually pay attention.

"If I had know you actually wanted to watch a movie—"

"What? You wouldn't have come?" Satsuki intervenes, grinning, and that shuts Ryuko up. Satsuki turns her head to face her, but Ryuko pointedly looks away, humming and staring at the ceiling. 

"Hey," Satsuki tries, but Ryuko continued to ignore her. Satsuki rolls her eyes and grabs Ryuko's face, forcing her to look into her eyes. Satsuki couldn't help but think how stupidly cute Ryuko was with her cheeks pressed together, still pouting. Satsuki quickly kisses her on the lips, still holding her face; Ryuko could barely kiss her back considering the forceful grip of Satsuki's fingers.

"Watch the movie, I promise it's good." Ryuko sighs but gives up, settling down onto the sheets and curling up next to her. Satsuki grins and throws an arm over Ryuko's shoulder, pulling her closer, and settles in for the film.

Satsuki is mildly surprised when Ryuko behaves and keeps quiet for the entire movie, reacting in all the right ways to the various scenes. 

"Okay, it was pretty good, but also totally fucked up," Ryuko says, speaking earnestly.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it," Satsuki replies.

"Hey, if we get married or whatever, instead of a man cave can we have one of those tit-filled milk bars?"

"Absolutely not," Satsuki states back plainly.

"Aw, come on, that shit would be rad as fuck," Ryuko whines, turning over on her back and looking to the ceiling.

"No," Satsuki insists, sitting up and putting away the various things scattered across her room.

"Fine then, what do you suggest as an alternative to a man cave?" Ryuko asks flippantly, sending Satsuki a pointed look.

"I want an empty room, with all the walls covered with chalkboard paint, so you can do your art," Satsuki replies, looking over her shoulder to see Ryuko blush just in time.

"You'd really do that for me?" Ryuko asks quietly, sitting on her knees with her head down, staring at the sheets. Satsuki walks over, putting a finger under her chin to turn her head up.

"Of course I would do that for you," Satsuki says back, and Ryuko's blush runs even deeper.

"You don't even know how beautiful you look right now," Satsuki whispers, and Ryuko flounders.

"I—uh, um—"

"How on earth can you talk about all the hot lesbian sex we're having and yet you can't even handle a sincere compliment without panicking. It never ceases to amaze me," Satsuki ponders, incredulous. 

"Shut up," Ryuko snaps, eyes still refusing to rest on Satsuki's face. This time, Satsuki initiates the kiss, and Ryuko, glad to have something else to focus on, kisses her back as passionately as she can manage. Once Ryuko starts trying to tug Satsuki out of her shirt, however, she pulls back.

"It's getting late—"

"Aw, fuck no, we're just getting to the good part; I'm tryin' to see some titties here—"

"What, forgotten what they looked like since last time?" Satsuki asks, raising a single brow.

"I never pass up an opportunity to see a good pair of tits, ok," Ryuko asserted seriously, giving Satsuki a mock salute.

"It's late, we have school tomorrow," Satsuki repeats, blatantly ignoring Ryuko's antics and pulling away to hand Ryuko her clothes.

"You're no fun," she grumbles, taking her pants and stepping back into them.

"Well, you seem to rather enjoy my company so—"

"Yeah, yeah, I get it," Ryuko snaps, grabbing her jacket.

"See you tomorrow before first bell?"

"Naw, I have a doctor's appointment in the morning, but I'll be back in time for stats."

"What's the doctor's appointment for?" Satsuki asks, her eyebrows pulling together.

"Nothing important," Ryuko says back smoothly, and Satsuki decides to drop the subject.

"Now are you gonna walk me to the door or not?" Satsuki rolls her eyes but offers her hand once Ryuko finishes putting on her socks and shoes. Satsuki leads the way, tip-toeing through her house as quietly as possible, with Ryuko clomping around like a herd of elephants behind her. Once they reach the front room, Satsuki pulls Ryuko in for a kiss and then practically shoves her out the door, worried about her mother hearing. Satsuki watches from the entryway as Ryuko walks out to her car, gets in and drives off into the night.

When Satsuki goes up to bed, her last thoughts are not of the the hell she's sure to receive from her mother come morning, rather, they are of Ryuko, and the blissfully simple life they lead.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahoy there, intrepid reader. I decided to go ahead and publish the first chapter of my new long-form story, even though I told myself I wouldn't until I updated my other series. Alas, I am shitty at listening to myself, and the yuri squad was told to assemble, so here we are.
> 
> And also, I know that this wasn't sad, but its gonna get pretty freaking depressing real quick, and so if that is not your cup of tea, I'm tellin ya now. Continuing my run of "can't stop, won't stop"
> 
> Oh, and here is my tumblr, for all interested/concerned parties: http://snarfaty.tumblr.com/


	2. Chapter 2

When Satsuki awoke the following morning, she _did_ get hell from her mother, who yelled at her from the time she woke up to the time she walked out the door. In preparation, Satsuki purposefully got up twenty minutes later than usual, and instead of her usual morning routine, she pulled her hair up into an untidy bun and grabbed a granola bar for breakfast. Still, twenty straight minutes of her mother screaming her ear off wasn’t exactly the way she intended to spend her morning, and the ominous “We’ll talk about this when you get home,” comment upon her leave made Satsuki shudder if she thought about it too long. 

Still, as per the usual, Satsuki pretends nothing is awry as she walks into school and finds her friends sitting at a table in the commons, comparing notes for an upcoming test. Uzu waves Satsuki over.

"Ah, good morning Satsuki," Ira says, sending Uzu a look of disapproval and catching his wrist to stop his incessant flailing.

"Where's the loudmouth?" Nonon asks as a form of greeting, glancing up and nodding as Satsuki slides down onto the bench.

"Doctor's appointment," Satuki answers bluntly, pulling out her own notes to study.

"Will she be joining us for lunch again?" Houka asks, his tone conveying a slight twinge of annoyance.

"Of course. She'll be back by third period," Satsuki says, sending each of her friends a pointed look when they collectively groan.

"Satsuki, that girl is insane," Nonon pleads, looking at Satsuki earnestly.

"Yeah, for once I actually agree with the snake," Houka chimes in, and Nonon gives him the finger.

"Now we should respect Satsuki's choices," Ira comments, and Satsuki smiles at him in solidarity, "but I must say I'm inclined to agree with Jakuzure and Inumuta." Satsuki's smile vanishes fast. "Satsuki, you must realize that you and Matoi are not compatible—"

"Satsuki, don't listen to them, that girl is always the life of the party," Uzu chided, "I mean, her and I get along well enough—"

"Satsuki, you should know that if Uzu condones something, it's probably not good for your overall well being," Nonon interrupted, and Uzu huffed in response.

"I have been dating Ryuko for almost a year now, you guys should be used to her by now," Satsuki sighs.

"Fine, date her," Nonon snaps, "I know we can't change your mind, but can you not invite her to lunch with us? Cause that's shoving her in my face."

Satsuki was about to say something back, but the bell rang, interrupting her. She gathered her notebooks and shoved them into her bag. "Fine then. Count me out for lunch today then," she says evenly, anger evident, and turns to walk away without listening for her friends response. 

Satsuki goes through her morning in a daze, only half paying attention to her lectures. She cannot stop thinking about her friends frustrating response to Ryuko, which have only increased since the new semester began and Ryuko shared their lunch period. Satsuki was happy at the prospect of spending more time with her, but her friends less-than-welcoming response hurt, especially Nonon's, who seemed to hate Ryuko with a peculiar intensity. Satsuki tried to push these thoughts to the back of her mind and focus, but she couldn't seem to shake them, which just made her morning pass by even more slowly. 

Eventually, however, lunch period arrives, and Satsuki packs up her things and leaves. She steps outside into the warm winter sun, takes out her phone and calls Ryuko. It takes a few moments, but she does pick up the phone on the first call.

"Er, hey Satsuki," Ryuko mumbles, obviously not happy.

"Hey, Ryuko," she answers, completely oblivious to Ryuko's tone. "So where are we meeting for lunch?"

"Uh, gonna have to take a rain check on that."

"Wait, what? Why?" Sastuki replies, confused. 

"Can you just come over after class? I'm not going to school for the rest of the day."

"I'm coming over now."

"No, wait-"

"Lunch is an hour, I can make it in plenty of time," Satsuki interrupts. "I'll see you soon."

"Satsuki-" Ryuko starts, but Satsuki hangs up before she can continue to protest. She storms off to her car, her mind racing, wondering what one earth could have Ryuko so freaked. She instantly jumps to the worst conclusions, but rather than dwell, she pushes those thoughts aside, choosing instead to focus on the road. Still, by the time she pulls up Ryuko's drive, her heart is pounding in her chest, the curiosity eating away at her.   _Just relax,_ she thinks to herself; _no mater what is going on, what ever happens will happens, and there is nothing you can do to change that. So just face this._ Satsuki takes a deep breath, and rings the doorbell.

Surprisingly, it's not Ryuko answering the door, but her father. In all the time that Satsuki has known Ryuko, she has only seen her father once or twice, and never in broad daylight. "Dr. Matoi," Satsuki stammers, taken aback by his very presence, "where is Ryuko?" 

"On the couch," he responds, voice thick with emotion. Satsuki doesn't bother with pleasantries, rather she pushes past Ryuko's father and rushes to the living room. She spots Ryuko instantly, lying on the couch facing the ceiling with her forearm draped over her face. Satsuki races over to her side, and takes Ryuko's hand in hers.

"Ryuko," she whispers, calmer now that she is in Ryuko's presence, and can see that she at least looks alright.

"Hey," Ryuko breathed, "I didn't want you to see me like this."

"Tell me what's going on," she says, cutting right to the chase.

"Satsuki," Ryuko says, moving away her arm from her face, revealing her eyes, puffy and red, "Satsuki, I'm sick. I'm really, really sick. I got my test results back today at the doctors and I have leukemia."

"How bad," Satsuki mouthes a few beats later, trying to hide her panic, "how bad is it?"

"I have a fifty-fifty chance. I start chemo next week."

"What about school?"

"I'm gonna take classes online so I can graduate on time. If I'm alive, that is," Ryuko snorts.

"Don't say that," Satsuki snaps, shutting her eyes tight. "You can't think like that."

"Why not? Face it Satsuki, there is a really good chance that I'm going to die. Satsuki, I'm dying," Ryuko's voice drops low, cracking at the last sentence, and a single tear leaks out of the corner of her eye. "No, no, I'm done crying," Ryuko asserts, sitting up, "I'm fucking done being upset." Satsuki, for once, is at a loss for words.

"Don't you have to go back to class?" Ryuko asks, changing the subject, wiping at her face. Satsuki gets up and sit next to Ryuko on the couch, curling up next to her.

"If you honestly think I'm going back to class, you really are an idiot," Satsuki says, shaking her head. "If my time with you really is limited, then I'm taking advantage and spending as much time with you as I possibly can."


	3. Chapter 3

"Aw, come on, Satsuki, please," Ryuko begs, tugging the sleeve of Satsuki's shirt.

"No, I won't have you late for your own treatment," Satsuki says back evenly, ignoring Ryuko's antics and staring out the windshield at the road ahead of her.

"But I'm actually hungry for once, and Taco Bell is right by the hospital," she whines, "I want it." And with that, Ryuko sits back in her seat, crosses her arms, and pouts like a toddler. "Please, if you hit the drive thru we'll totally have plenty of time."

"Even if I said yes, you'll probably just vomit after your chemo, so what exactly is the point?" Satsuki questions, wrinkling her nose.

"Taco Bell now, regrets later," Ryuko moans back, slumping in her seat. Satsuki rolls her eyes at the dramatics. Wordlessly she gets off at the required exit and pulls into the Taco Bell parking lot. Ryuko pumps both her fists towards the roof in victory, practically shaking in anticipation. Satsuki can't help but smile.

Ryuko sits there, squirming as Satsuki orders for her, even going so far as to lean over into Satsuki's lap to shout at the microphone for sour cream in her triple steak burrito. " _It comes with sour cream,_ " Satsuki hisses at her, pushing the other woman back into her seat. Ryuko just sticks her tongue out in response and continues to fidget as Satsuki pays and they wait for her food. Once Satsuki hands Ryuko the burrito, however, she is finally still, savoring the smell of cheap fast food.

"Oh my god babe, I love you," Ryuko groans, taking a huge bite of the burrito.

"Don't call me babe," Satsuki says back, focusing on driving.

"Don't hold your breath babe," Ryuko replies through a mouthful of food, grinning. Satsuki doesn't respond as she pulls into the parking garage of the hospital and waits patiently for Ryuko to finish her food. "Fuck, I can't, I can't eat this whole thing," she sighs, passing off the burrito to Satsuki. "I can't believe I cannot finish a fucking burrito. This is pathetic."

"I'm glad you're not finishing this," Satsuki replies, taking a bite.

"Why? If you were hungry you could have gotten something."

"I just know for a fact that throwing up Taco Bell isn't pleasant," Satsuki grumbles. Ryuko look at her, momentarily confused, and grins widely once she remembers what Satsuki is referencing.

" _That's right_ , you blew Taco Bell chunks all over the Subway in December when you were visiting colleges in New York," Ryuko recalls, a shit-eating grin on her face, "and you called me, totally wasted, and were convinced I wasn't real."

"That is not what happened—"

"That is exactly what happened," Ryuko interrupts.

"I thought that you were convinced I wasn't real" Satsuki sighs, rolling her eyes, "I was just clarifying for your benefit."

"That's is not what happened at all, but if it helps you sleep better at night, then fine, yes, that's exactly what happened," Ryuko says back, exasperated.

"Don't you have somewhere to be?" Satsuki asked, changing the subject.

"Hey, you brought it up, don't be like that," Ryuko grumbled, opening the car door. Satsuki watched as she gathered her things and stepped out; Ryuko could sense her gaze. "Ya know, I'm not some damsel in distress okay, I'm not gonna faint or anything."

Satsuki feels her own face heat up. "I'm sorry. I worry about you."

"Worry about me when I'm dead," Ryuko says, grinning.

"That's not funny."

"I thought it was," Ryuko says, snickering. "If you thought that becoming the biggest cliche of all time—that of which being a teenage girl getting leukemia in high school—was gonna make me lose my stellar sense of humor, you have another thing coming."

"Hilarious," Satsuki says dryly, rolling her eyes. "You actually have somewhere to be you know."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm going mom," Ryuko chimes back, then purposefully moves as slowly as possible getting out of the car.

"Aren't you going to close the door?" Satsuki asks, clearly annoyed, drumming her fingers on the steering wheel.

"Nope," Ryuko says back, and Satsuki decides not to fight and just reaches over to close it herself, rolling down the window in the process.

"Are you sure you don't want me to come with you?"

"I already told you, I sit there for four hours and have shit pumped into my veins, it's really not that interesting," Ryuko answers, scratching the back of her neck.

"But it must be boring just sitting there," Satsuki pressed, and Ryuko shifts uncomfortably at her tone.

"I mean, yeah, I don't like sitting still for that long and stuff, but I'm not alone, there are other people getting treatment, and it's a good time to do my homework since there is nothing else to do. So I'm fine. Just pick me up in four hours."

"Can I come? Please?"

"I dunno—"

"What is so wrong with me coming with you?" Satsuki implores, making Ryuko shuffle.

"I don't want you to see it," she practically whispers, "I don't want you to know."

"Know what? What's so wrong about it?" Satsuki continues to probe, and Ryuko in turn bristles out of frustration.

"Listen Satsuki, it's not a happy place. This is the children's hospital, and these kids, these kids with cancer who are basically being robbed of any semblance of a normal life; it's fucking really depressing. And I—" Suddenly she stops mid-sentence, and looks down.

"What? Ryuko, please, tell me," Satsuki pleads, and it takes a moment but Ryuko finally snaps her head up to face her, breathing evenly.

"It's my future, I know exactly what's coming for me, seeing these kids. I've only been to three treatments, and I already feel like shit, and I know it's just gonna get worse. A lot worse. And I don't want you to see what I'm going to have to go through. I don't want you to worry about me." For a moment, Satsuki doesn't say anything, at a loss for words. But, once she gathers her thoughts, she gets out of the car and laces her fingers with Ryuko's, leaning her forehead into hers.

"I can't believe you're worrying about me right now. Please, worry about yourself first. I'm coming with you, and there is nothing you can do to stop me." Ryuko tries to protest, but Satsuki just kisses her to shut her up.

"Alright, fine, you win," Ryuko sighs when Satsuki pulls away. "Just don't embarrass me, okay?"

"I think you do a fine job of that without me," Satsuki snorts, rolling her eyes.

"Hey, I'm the cancer patient here, you're the ignoramus now," Ryuko says back, grinning.

"Fine. Educate me then," Satsuki intones.

"Call me Professor Matoi."

"No, you don't have a doctorate."

"What if I die before I can get one? I'm kidding, I'm kidding, sorry," Ryuko rushes before Satsuki can disapprove of her reflexive joke. "Fine, forget calling me anything special, you fun-sucker."

"How about I just call you Hazel Grace?"

"Did you seriously just try to make a joke referencing that stupid fucking John Green book?" Satsuki laughs at Ryuko's serious expression. "Seriously, if you call me that I will kill you."

" _It's a metaphor,_ " Satsuki whispers, and Ryuko groans.

"Lesson number one from PROFESSOR MATOI, don't mention that book once we get to the oncology ward. Actually, don't mention that book to me ever again." Ryuko snaps, and Satsuki nods vigorously in response. "Seriously though, don't mention anything that could possibly romanticize cancer."

"I wouldn't dream of that."

"Well good. Come on now, let's go." Satsuki releases Ryuko and together they walk through the doors and into the lobby of the hospital. Ryuko motions for Satsuki to hang back for a second, and talks to the lady at the front desk momentarily. It only takes a minute, and soon enough Ryuko is leading Satsuki through the hospital to the oncology ward. Once they arrive, Ryuko check in at another desk with another lady, who leads the two towards a room with five big cushioned chairs arranged in a U-shape. Already seat and attached to IV's are four kids, two boys and two girls of varying ages. Ryuko sits down in the last chair and Satsuki stands back awkwardly as the nurse hooks up Ryuko to her own IV and administers the chemo. Once she is done, however, the nurse turns towards Satsuki and smiles.

"You're Ryuko's friend?" she asks, tone overly cheery. Satsuki gives her a brief nod, and the woman wordlessly pulls up an additional chair for the hallway, not nearly as luxurious as the others. "Here, you're welcome to keep your friend company." And on that note, the nurse quickly walks out back into the hallway, leaving the six of them alone.

"Hey guys," Ryuko smiles at the group, obviously familiar with them.

"So, who's this?" one of the boys, who appears to be maybe ten or so, inquires, staring at Satsuki.

"This is my girlfriend, Satsuki."

"So this is the girl she wouldn't stop talking about," the oldest-looking girl says knowingly, grinning. "My name's KayLeigh," she adds, extending her hand. Satsuki takes it and smiles uncomfortably back. "Since I'm sure you’re wondering, I have Leukemia, like the loudmouth over here."

"I'm Jack," the boy who asked who Satsuki was previously interjects. "Lymphoma."

"Dan, Thyroid," the other boy states plainly, more reserved than Jack.

"And I'm Von," the youngest of the group says last, smiling weakly. "Lung."

"We've all been in treatment together for the last couple weeks; Ryuko's the newcomer. The lineup gets switched every once in a while, when something happens," KayLeigh explains, seeing Satsuki's face and reading her discomfort as confusion. She nods back, but still doesn't know exactly what to say.

"Wait, she's your girlfriend? Like, you're dating a girl? How does that work?" Jack probes Ryuko, speaking loudly.

"Well, I guess it works a lot better than dating a boy, she's less messy than you, slob."

"Huh. I guess I never thought about that," Jack say, his face puzzled. "Maybe my mom should date a girl, cause she tells my dad all the time how messy he is. Hey wait a minute, I'm not a slob!"

"Pretty sure you are," Dan says lazily. "On Wednesday you left out all that painting stuff."

"Yeah, the nurses had a fit when they saw that," KayLeigh chimes in.

"Even I'm not that messy, and I'm littler than you," Von puts in, her face scrunching up.

"How old are you?" Satsuki asks gently, directed at Von.

"I just turned six," she says back, grinning and showing her age on her fingers.

"Pretty tough for a six year old," Satsuki intones.

"I'm the toughest," Von proclaims, voice much louder than before, posing and flexing her biceps. Everyone in the group smiles, and finally Satsuki feels at ease.

For the four hours she sits there, Satsuki mostly just listens and talks only when directly spoken to. She never would have thought that Ryuko was hanging out with kids much younger than her, and she can't help but feel awestruck at the ease and grace with which she interacts with them. Their various chaperones shuffle in and out at different times, but it seem like the system is that the kids can interact with each other, and some semblance of a normal community. Satsuki found the whole experience to be fascinating. KayLeigh, who it turns out is the same age as Ryuko and Satsuki, was the easiest to talk to, not only because of the age similarity, but rather because she just seemed to have this presence that oozed calm. Satsuki found herself really liking her. She liked all these kids. And, once they all got up and prepared to leave with their various guardians, Satsuki completely understood why Ryuko didn't want her to see this.

“I get it,” Satsuki started as soon as they got back into the car and she started driving to Ryuko’s house. “I get it now. Those kids, they’re all great. And they’re all dying.”

“Yeah, no shit Sherlock, every single one of them has cancer, remember,” Ryuko says bitterly, looking queasy.

“Do you need to vomit?” Satsuki questions, looking to make sure there was the bucket Ryuko had brought along at within her reach. She spots it, behind the passenger seat, and quickly passes it to Ryuko, just in time for her to throw up. Satsuki doesn’t say anything as Ryuko heaves up the burrito, even when there is nothing left she’s still retching. However, once her body stops, Ryuko tiredly turns to face her.

“You were right, that was awful. But I don’t regret the burrito.”

“If you say so,” Satsuki says softly, trying to hide the sharp pang in her chest at seeing Ryuko so battered.

“Like I said, this is just the beginning. I’m going to be puking everywhere. All my hair is gonna fall out. My cheeks will sink in. I’ll be tired, all the time, more than I already am. Everything is going to get worse.” Ryuko doesn’t speak with any malice in her voice, just a sadness. “And I know that I have to get worse before I can get better, but I don’t want you to see this. And don’t say I’m worrying about you. It’s me, I don’t want anyone, especially you, to see me this weak.”

“If you are trying to scare me off, it’s not working. I’m sticking through this, with you, whether you like it or not. No one tells Satsuki Kiryuin what she can and cannot do.”

“Satsuki, I—"

“Don’t say it.”

“You don’t even know what I was gonna say!” Ryuko puffs.

“I’m sure it was something along the lines of, _you don’t have to do this_ , or _you don’t get it_ —"

“No, that’s not what I was gonna say. I was gonna say thank you,” Ryuko grumbles, and Satsuki’s face lights up. “Don’t think you’re off the hook though. Expect me to constantly tell you you’re welcome to bail on me anytime you feel necessary.”

“Like I would do that,” Satsuki scoffs, offended. “You don’t honestly think that little of me, do you?”

“Well, if you did bail, it would be your loss, cause then when I get better and write a book about it and go on _Ellen_ you’re not gonna get any of the fame.”

“Thanks Ryuko. Really, I’m not being sarcastic, thank you,” Satsuki says, taking Ryuko’s hand.

“Now take me home, woman. I need to go puke some more and sleep,” Ryuko commands, voice brimming with mock authority, despite how soft it sounded.

“Only if I can stay,” Satsuki says back, grinning.

Ryuko rolls her eyes. “Well, I suppose you can.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanted to take some time out to recognize just how rad it is that you guys are, like, talking about my story, and liking my story, both on here and on tumblr, and gosh, I just, really, thank you guys, I love talking to you and wish I could talk to more of you all the time. Even if you hate it, cause I know that some of you do, I still light up when I'm important enough to be disliked. So, um, thanks, and if you want, cause I would love this, drop me a line on tumblr, here ya go: http://snarfaty.tumblr.com/
> 
> Oh! And also, I'm thinking about doing, like, a prequel series of Ryuko La Satsuki one-shots pre-cancer, I have some ideas and stuff but yeah, I think that would be rad. Kinda balance out all the sad I keep throwing at you. Let me know yo.


End file.
